


Party Feels

by HopefulSnow



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Hurt Tony, Hurt Tony Stark, IronStrange, M/M, Tony Feels, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-09
Updated: 2019-02-09
Packaged: 2019-10-24 23:41:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17713907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HopefulSnow/pseuds/HopefulSnow
Summary: A little after the battle with Thanos, the Avengers hold a party at a rented out hotel (courtesy of Tony obviously). Everyone is in happy, go lucky spirits for managing to get everything and everyone back to normal. Well, almost everyone was happy. Stephen quickly picked up on Tony's after battle blues and wanted to spend almost all night talking about it. Tony wanted to too but his mind told him otherwise.





	Party Feels

Tony sighed longingly, leaning his forearms against the railing of the hotel balcony. The night dark, plunging everyone in a pit of black. Only Tony noticed though, everyone else was screaming and laughing in the party hall, putting the battle with Thanos quickly in the past. Tony couldn’t, it wasn’t that easy for him. The memories of losing everyone flashed in his mind again, sending sparks of pain through his head. 

“You know, if you host a party you kinda have to be a part of it.” A deep voice said, startling Tony. He whipped his head around to see Stephen in the entrance of the balcony, giving him a small smirk. He leaned against the doorframe, tugging at his sweatshirt ties. He had opted with casual wear when he came and honestly, Tony liked his robes better.

“In my defense, I was pressured into doing so,” Tony said, watching as Stephen came up to the ledge and stood next to him. His shoulder brushed against Tony’s, sending a little electricity through the engineer for a split second. 

“also, I basically can do whatever the hell I want.”  
Stephen chuckled, looking out into the city. Street lights and cars lit up the world below, stars helping light the sky. It warmed Stephen a bit to see other people live their lives around him, comforting his empty heart. The breeze was frigid, autumn just creeping upon New York in a lingering, sluggish way. 

“Why are you here?” Stephen asked, shooting Tony a glance. His eyes fell on Tony’s richly colored eyes. They reminded him of a morning coffee and fresh drawn soil, still damp from spring rain. It gave Stephen a sense of warmth that he hadn’t felt in years. 

Tony just shrugged, a smirk still glued to his face. He averted his gaze to the building lights and thought for a moment. 

“Not sure, maybe it’s just the pressure of entertaining.” He ended up with, totally ignoring the screaming temptation of spilling everything out. For some reason, when Stephen and he were always alone he had the sudden thought of telling Stephen about his anxiety and fear. He wasn’t sure why he guessed he just thought of Stephen as a trusting being. Even though he only met the man a few months ago.  
Stephen just laughed, “almost forgot you were a locked box.” He said.

Tony frowned but didn’t say anything and remained next to the wizard. Quiet fell on them once again as Stephen quickly conjured a glass of wine with a wave of his hand. He took a long sip before offering to conjure a drink for Tony.

“Sure, why not?” He said, straightening his posture a bit. Stephen gave a smirk before snapping his fingers, having a glass of whiskey appear at Tony’s fingertips. Tony glanced at it skeptically.  
“What brand?” He asked, swishing the liquid a bit.  
Stephen smiled, taking another drink of his own. “I’m sure you know.”

Tony sighed and drank away. The taste of the familiar whiskey burned his throat in a warm way. He glanced over at Stephen who just stared ahead a small grin still on his lips.

“Okay, this is weird,” Tony remarked, putting the glass on the ledge. Stephen chuckled a bit and stood up straighter. He immediately realized that Tony was a bit taller, his face almost coming to Strange’s nose.  
“What happened?” He asked, walking closer to the engineer for scale. Tony furrowed his brows for a quick second but laughed.

“Hightops.” He answered, clasping a hand to Stephen’s shoulder for support as he lifted one of his legs up. He revealed bright red sneakers with a subtle heel underneath them. 

A jolt of heat quickly shot through Stephen as he felt Tony’s hand push his shirt into his skin. His skin burned but he composed his nerves, silently screaming beneath. Tony quickly looked back at him, locking eyes with the wizard for a just a moment. He kept his hand on his shoulder, feeling the smooth fabric of Stephen’s attire in his palm.

“Stephen…” Tony began, his voice quivering slightly. He glanced back and forth between eyes, almost falling into them. The words seemed to almost burst out of his lips and tumble to the floor like rocks. He wanted to vent so bad to him, to spill everything out in the open till he was drained. But he knew he couldn’t.  
“Yes?” Stephen replied, his voice lowering more to a calming, shaking tone.

He slowly reached for Tony’s waist, planting a hand on his hip and gently pulling him close. Tony’s mind whirled about as he felt the warm feeling of Stephen hand against him. Tony quickly pressed against the man, inching his face closer. Soon, he could smell Stephen’s clean mint breath and subtle cologne that was dabbed on his neck. Tony closed his eyes and inhaled deeply for a moment.

“Tony,” Stephen called, snapping Tony back suddenly. “Were you going to say something?”

Tony cleared his throat and pushed away from Stephen, stepping back a bit and rubbing the nape of his neck. He couldn’t. Never. This friendship was too important to him to just throw away now. He needed this to last as long as he can stretch it. Until Stephen finds out about Tony’s real colors and quits abruptly.  
“Uh, nothing.” he said quickly, “I just wanted to let you know I’ll be back to the party in a moment.” 

Stephen nodded, not fully convinced but turned his back to Tony and walked back out into the hotel hallway. Before he disappeared back to the gathering he looked back at Tony, seeing by some chance he would object and run to the wizard. But he didn’t, he just remained at the balcony, his shoulders stiff and his head propped ahead.

“See you there, Stark,” Stephen called, pushing back his utter disappointment. Tony nodded silently, holding tightly to the balcony railing. 

 

Two weeks later...

It was around nine pm when a knock was heard on the Sanctum door. Stephen put down his book with a puzzled expression as he went to answer it. His eyes widened a bit to see Tony smiling back at him.

“Hey, I came to see if you can fix something.” He said, his eyes shining brightly through his colored sunglasses. Stephen smiled back motioned for him to come in. Tony stepped inside and breathed in the fresh smell of books that wafted through the Sanctum walls. Every time Tony visited the place, the smell had always made him feel immediately at home, no matter his mood.

“What is it you need to be mended?” Stephen asked, closing the door and walking over to Tony.  
Tony’s face fell suddenly as he remembered why he was here. “Oh, uh this.” He gently pulled up his t-shirt to expose a large gash running down the side of his torso, stretching to his back. Stephen couldn’t but gasp at the oozing blood and dark red skin lining the wound. He quickly ran a shaky finger along the line, careful not to disturb it. 

“How did this happen?” He asked, still entranced by the large cut. He was amazed that Tony could put a shirt on over it without the cotton, rubbing and irritating the wound. It must’ve been throbbing by now.  
And it was. It was even difficult for Tony to lift his arms over his head, let alone put on clothes. He struggled this morning showering and getting dressed, everything rattled the gash, causing it to ache more.  
“During a mission last night.” He said, looking down as Stephen continued to trace the injury.  
“Kinda wasn’t paying attention and took a pretty good hit.”

Stephen sighed and straightened back up, “come with me.” He said, guiding Tony to the kitchen where he instructed him to jump and sit on top of the kitchen counter. Tony obeyed and dangled his feet over the edge of the island. 

“I’ll be right back,” Stephe promised, leaving to get the first aid kit he kept in the bathroom. When he returned he almost dropped the box. His eyes fell on a shirtless Tony sitting in his kitchen. His face burned as Tony caught his gaze. For a moment, they both thought of the same thing. But it disappeared just as quickly as it came. Stephen blinked away the harsh feelings and he opened the first aid kit grabbing hold of the alcohol.  
“This is going to hurt.” He warned, dripping alcohol onto a cotton ball. Tony nodded, fully aware of what was going down. When the substance made contact when Tony’s ripped skin, he let out a gasp as pain surged through his gut.

“Told you.” Stephen chirped with a smirk. He cleaned the wound and started to the thread the needle, preparing for stitches.

“How many?” Tony asked, propping himself up with his elbows. 

“Don’t know, let’s guess, nine maybe,” Stephen answered, holding the needle carefully. “Now sit up and stay still.” He instinctively took Tony’s hand and pulled him upright. The contact made Tony flushed red but Stephen didn’t notice. As he started to thread the needle through Tony’s skin, Tony had time to stare intently at Strange without getting caught. He longed to run his fingers through Stephen’s hair, to lightly graze the white streaks along the side of his head. He desired to drag the man’s chin to him and kiss him lightly, till it became more intense. He wished to stare into his blue ocean eyes for as long as he wanted, falling deeply into them till he could only see stars.

“Done.” Stephen quickly said, snipping the last of the thread, and standing up again to admire his work. He had used the magic of course but he did think he did a splendid job. Tony looked down and smiled sadly for just a moment before flashing Stephen a waxy one.

“Thank you,” he said, jumping off the counter and pulling his shirt over his head. A sting of pain tugged at Stephen’s heart as the shirt hid Tony’s scarred and damaged chest once again.  
“I owe you one.”

Stephen only nodded before they stood silently in the kitchen, taking in each other’s company for one last moment.

“Stephen..” Tony began again, testing to see if he had the strength to say what had been on his mind for years. The strength didn’t come to him.

“Yes?” Stephen replied, slight eagerness slipping out. Tony gazed at Stephen searching for the “yes you can talk.” he wanted to find. But he was unsuccessful. Even though Stephen was practically ripping at the seams. No, this is what Tony needs to do himself. It hurt Stephen to see Tony struggle to talk when he was the most confident and outgoing person he’s had the pleasure of knowing.

“I-” Tony had nothing. He just stood there helpless as Stephen stared down at him, pleading to release what pressure this man had on himself. He wanted to make Tony feel better, he wanted to make all the pain he knew the man had disappeared in one fell swoop. But it didn’t work like that. At least, his magic didn’t.

“Yes?” Stephen repeated, keeping his voice as calm and collected as possible. He disregarded his mind screaming warning signals and gently took Tony’s chin, pulling it up so Stark would look at Stephen’s face. When they met gazes, Tony’s eyes welled with tears. They flushed out, blinding him for a second before spilling over the edge, running down his face and dripping at his feet. Stephen gingerly wiped the tears away with his thumb and leaned in, planting his lips lightly on the engineers, taking in the sweet taste finally.

 

Tony woke up in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar bedroom. He sat up and rubbing his torso where his wound was and felt nothing. he lifted up his shirt to see the gash was merely a scrape now. He looked to his side to see Stephen asleep next to him, his back to Stark.

“Oh, shit.” He whispered, a sinking feeling suddenly pushed deeper into his chest. He needed to get out of there. 

He quickly but silently flung off the blankets and swung his feet over the side of the bed, taking in a deep breath. What had he done? Most likely comprised his and Stephen’s friendship forever. The thought made a sick feeling resonate in the pit of his stomach. He then jumped as the covers shifted behind him.

A hand slowly wrapped around his torso. Stephen’s grasp was firm but gentle as he pulled Tony back to him sleepily. Tony’s heart melted as he felt Stephen’s body heat encase him quickly. NO. he quickly pulled away and stood up beginning to put his pants back on.

“What are you doing?” Stephen asked, groggily, getting up with squinty eyes. His hair was snarled and messy from fingers digging through it. Tony trembled as memories from the night before came flooding back. He told Stephen everything, every little detail was on the table. He felt so vulnerable and weak. Fresh tears flushed back into his eyes as he stood in the middle of Stephen’s room in only jeans. 

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, his voice shaky with force. He didn’t want to do this. He wanted to go back to his bed and let Stephen snake his arms around him and pull him close to his chest.  
“We can’t do this.”

Stephen sat up confused, “but we already did it.” 

Tony heaved a shaky sigh and sat at the edge of the bed, burying his face in his hands. 

Stephen stared at the engineers back for a moment, contemplating.

“Did I hurt you?” He asked, dread filling his throat. “You wanted that, right?”

Tony quickly nodded, pursing his raw bruised lips. “It’s just hard.”

Stephen leaned forward, crawling to the edge of the bed to sit next to Tony. 

“What’s hard?” He asked, hesitant to touch the man next to him. He refrained from doing so and just kept his hands in his lap.

“I just spilled everything I had to you,” Tony confessed, his voice still drowning in anxiety and tears. 

“All the horrible shit all the pain and suffering, my destructive behavior my panic attacks, my night terrors, everything.” He stared up at Stephen with blurry eyesight. Stephen’s gaze was straight and intentive, listening to every word coming out of Tony’s mouth.

“And yet you still want me.”

Stephen bent down and kissed Tony gently, letting it linger for a moment longer before pulling away. His lips were sore and swollen as well, hurting each time he kissed Stark. But he didn’t care.

“Tony, there is nothing anyone especially you can do to ever to stop me from caring about you.” he was sincere. He drew out every word, making sure Tony would hear every word he was saying. 

Tony held onto Stephen’s face and kissed him again, letting the feeling of lust turn into something stronger between both of them.


End file.
